Sorry this chapter took so long to make. A lot of things have recently developed, such as me finally getting a Nintendo Switch and moving into an apartment to cease living with my grandma. Other things have come up, too. But, finally, my new chapter is up, so... please enjoy.

Chapter 16: A Brother's Agony

Lying face up on the bed, Dizzy screams and cries in agony while Ky cradles her hand in his own.

Though her self-healing keeps both the poison and magic at bay, the wound is still emitting harsh, corrosive miasma that looks as painful as it is.

"Dizzy..." says Ky. "Please, stay strong."

Dizzy is at a loss for words as the excruciating pain keeps them from reaching her lips.

Meanwhile, outside of the room is Izzy, looking as miserable as he feels.

"This is all my fault." Izzy thinks to himself. "I don't deserve a sister like Dizzy for what I've done."

Meanwhile, in a dark room lined with shelves holding several vials of liquid and other substances, Stahl is gathering various ones, though carefully as he observes each and every one he comes across. Yet, with how dire the situation is, his pace doesn't slow down.

After carefully yet swiftly mixing in ingredients into a green liquid boiling in a cauldron, Stahl begins to stir it.

Just then, Sol appears and says, "God damn, what's with the strong odor?!"

"Sorry." says Stahl. "I wish I had more time to explain, but I'm trying to brew a concoction to help Dizzy with her situation."

"You really think it can work?" asks Sol as he somehow forgets the smell.

"To be honest, I don't know." says Stahl. "With how bad her situation is, I really don't have time to ponder that. Yet, the fact I'm mixing this stuff up without distilling the ingredients means I'm going to have to take a chance. Doesn't help she was hit with enough concentrated Nightshade that could knock a dragon out."

"At this point, we can't settle for 50-50." says Sol. "I think I might have an idea as to how to make this crap of yours work."

"You do?" asks a surprised Stahl. "Don't keep me in suspense."

"Take some of my blood and add it to your potion." says Sol.

Surprised and a bit weirded out, Stahl asks, "Are you sure?"

"Dizzy's own immune system should be strong for poison on its own." says Sol. "It'll even be enough to ward off both it and the magic. However, it could also work itself into killing her. The healing factor of my DNA ought to take some of that load off."

"You're speaking words only Miriel would understand. And even that's debatable." says Stahl. "I guess it's a worth a shot since I have no knowledge of Gear physiology."

"In that case..." says Sol as he takes off his glove and pulls out a knife.

Wasting no time, Sol cuts a deep gash into his exposed palm and holds it over the green liquid as blood quickly drips into it.

"There." says Sol. "Stir it in and let's see if that helps the process."

"Don't want to be naively positive, but I feel this might work." says Stahl as he continues to stir.

Arriving in the room, Stahl brings the potion over to Dizzy as he says, "Lord Ky, I need you to stand to the side for a while. I need to administer this medicine right away."

"Right." says Ky as he does what he's told.

Stahl comes over to Dizzy and brings the flask close to her mouth and says, "Alright, Dizzy, I know you're in tremendous pain right now, but I need you to drink this. Just try and concentrate on getting this down."

Though the pain makes it incredibly tough, Dizzy manages to relax a bit as Stahl tips the flask over Dizzy drinks ever so slightly, guzzling it down as fast as she can manage to.

"Will that help her?" asks Ky.

"I can only hope." says Stahl. "It should at least remove the poison, but Sol added some of his blood in hopes of speeding up the healing process."

"He did what?" asks Ky again, thinking he misheard Stahl.

"Yeah, he says his, uh... DMA or whatever you call it could make her heal faster." says Stahl. "I don't know if he's right about that or not, but since he and Dizzy are Gears, I won't question it."

"Maybe, but I only worry about what could happen afterward." says Ky. "There is the chance Sol is Dizzy's father, but that makes me worried if she could take on some of his mannerisms or something worse."

"I think we should be more focused on your wife getting better." says Stahl.

"Yeah, you're right, Stahl." says Ky.

Stahl says, "Alright, that's all of the potion. I just hope it all does the trick."

Right after he says that, Dizzy's cries of pain start to become less and less, thus she begins to show signs of calmness.

"Huh?" asks Stahl. "Is... is it working?"

Just then, Stahl notices the giant gash and miasma coming out of it begin to disappear.

"Hey! It's actually working!" says Stahl.

Ky comes over to see the same thing and says, "It really is!"

Even Izzy's attention is caught by this development as he breathes a sigh of relief, though still not showing any signs of becoming happier.

Ky comes over to Dizzy and asks, "Dizzy, are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, considerably..." says Dizzy as she breathes heavily with sweat dripping down her face. "I still feel some pain, but... it's all fading."

Ky sighs with relief as he says, "Oh, thank God. That's the second time I almost lost you."

"Ky?" asks Dizzy.

"Yes, Dizzy?" Ky replies.

"If you don't mind, Ky..." says Dizzy. "I want to get some rest. I still feel a little weak after hurting so much."

"Right. I understand." says Ky.

Stahl then stands up and says, "I'll be getting back to my lab to put some more of this potion in stock should it be needed. I'll get back with all of you later."

"Thank you again, Stahl." says Ky.

"Anything I can do to help the situation." says Stahl. "Call me if you need me again."

And with that, Stahl leaves casually.

Ky then says, "You get plenty of rest, Dizzy. I'll come back to check on you later."

"Thank you." says Dizzy right before she falls asleep.

Afterwards, Ky leaves the room.

Just as he passes him, Izzy says, "Hey, Ky."

Ky looks at Izzy and says, "What is it, Izzy?"

"If we can, I'd like to talk a bit." says Izzy. "It's about my attitude earlier today, among other things."

"If you're talking about wanting to fight me because of the fact I got Dizzy pregnant again..." says Ky. "You don't have to explain yourself."

"Actually, I feel I must." says Izzy.

"In that case, let's talk while getting away from Dizzy." says Ky. "We don't need to disturb her rest."

After that, Izzy and Ky travel together while talking.

"Ky, you remember the Order of the Black Lion had me as both their slave and personal weapon of destruction, right?" asks Izzy.

"How could I forget?" says Ky. "I'll always remember the day we first met you where you were so focused on trying to kill Dizzy that you were willing to destroy all of Illyria just to make it happen."

"The day Dizzy expressed her love of having a brother to me is a day I'll always cherish." says Izzy. "I felt important and needed for more than just having these abilities of mine. I felt loved for the first time in my life."

"I know." says Ky. "I remember you said you would do anything to protect Dizzy from thereon out."

"But that's where I've made my biggest mistake." says Izzy. "I've been so focused on protecting her from others that I never once took her feelings into consideration. In the end, I've really been doing it for myself rather than for her. I've been so selfish that I've been more focused keeping her a certain way rather than letting her enjoy herself and being able to live her life."

"I wouldn't know much about your situation." says Ky. "I've never had brothers or sisters. Therefore, I'm clueless on how to tell you what it takes to be a better sibling."

"Even so, I've wronged you both." says Izzy. "I haven't let her live her life. And I haven't let you enjoy your time with her. I never saw that before, but realizing she ran off and nearly got killed because of me, I think I should have. For that, I don't deserve to call Dizzy my sister."

"Don't go beating yourself up, Izzy." says Ky. "It's great that Dizzy can have such a protective and loving brother. I do admit that you protect her from others that she loves at times, such as myself. You have to remember that Dizzy has had a lot of family that's not blood-related to her, such as having Testament as a brother figure and finding family with the Jellyfish Pirates. I know you never got to have a true family as the Order of the Black Lion abused you and only thought of you as a weapon. You've had it really bad. In fact, I think you protect Dizzy from even those that love her because in a way, you're still jealous of her."

"Yeah, I guess I must be." says Izzy. "She's had it so good, despite the dangers and problems she faced. And even when she was in a bad situation, she always had all of you to lean against. I never once in my life had that. When I learned I had a sister, I felt nothing but rage when the Order was feeding me those lies about her and mother abandoning me. And I only became angrier when she denied having a brother or even knowing about me. Yet, the moment she showed me real love, I was willing to do anything to protect her, even from you. Now I know that my protection was doing more harm than good. In fact, it almost got her killed."

Ky says, "Izzy, stop blaming yourself. You couldn't have known what would happen. None of us could. Rather than just punishing yourself, try to find a way to better the situation. Learn when you need to protect her and who to protect her from. Sounds simple on paper, I know, but it will take practice. In the end, if you can manage that, I think you'll be proud to call yourself Dizzy's brother."

Izzy sighs and says, "I'll certainly try."

"That's all you can do." says Ky.

Just then, Chrom and Robin appear and Chrom asks, "So, how is Dizzy doing?"

"Better." says Ky. "She's still in pain, but Stahl's concoction worked like a charm. Of course, that might be mainly because Sol added his blood to it."

"Normally, I'd be concerned, but anything to save an ally at this point in time." says Robin.

Ky says, "She's sleeping right now, so we should do our best to not disturb her."

"Right you are." says Chrom.

Just then, everyone hears someone clear their throat. Everyone looks to see Dr. Paradigm approaching.

"Dr. Paradigm, what is it?" asks Ky.

"If you don't mind, your majesty, I wish to see you in my temporary lab." says Dr. Paradigm. "I wish to do some studying on you after recent events."

"For what?" asks Ky.

"I think you know the answer already." says Dr. Paradigm.

Ky sighs and says, "Right."

"Go on ahead, Ky." says Izzy. "I'll stay around to keep an eye on Dizzy."

"Okay, I'll see you all soon." says Ky. "Let me know what happens."

And with that, Ky goes with Dr. Paradigm.

"What was that all about?" asks Chrom rubbing his head.

Meanwhile, at the new camp set up by Brutus and his gang, Juniper is holding a bag of ice on the bruise on her face.

"Man, this is not fair." says Juniper. "Pain is no fun when it's happening to me."

Brutus just stands there with his arms crossed as he says, "Still, this is very troubling. Now the Shepherds are on to us. And we've got no way to keep them off of our trail. More than likely, they're finding a way to treat that woman, and once she's recovered, they'll be after us again."

"If only we could have acted sooner." says Juniper.

"What's the point?" asks Brutus. "If we did that, we would have the Shepherds after us sooner. We were right to not take that many chances. You know how I operate. Some may call it cowardly, but it's not really that if you know how to pick your battles."

"Even so, we're badly crippled now." says Juniper.

"Yes, and I'm going to have to reprimand a lot of you for this, including you." says Brutus.

"Such a time to gain new knowledge and it's all wasted by those no good Sheperds." says Juniper. "IT'S JUST NOT FAIR!"

Brutus kneels down next to Juniper and puts an arm around her as he says, "There, there. We'll get another chance soon. In the meantime, we're just going to have to lay low and find a way to keep ourselves out of the limelight for a while."

As Brutus continues to console Juniper, the other men and women see this from a distance and all have disturbed expressions.

"Jee, how can the boss love that little sicko?" asks a man.

"He definitely seems to play favoritism with her." says a woman. "Especially since she's now his new Lieutenant."

"We'd better not talk in secrecy too much, for who knows what they could do to us." says another man.

In Dr. Paradigm's lab, the Gear doctor comes in to see a sitting Ky as he has a paper in his hands and flies towards the High King, giving a concerned expression.

"What is it, Doctor?" asks Ky.

Dr. Paradigm sighs and says, "It's as I figured. The most recent time you and Dizzy were intimate, your cellular transformation has increased expodentially."

"It has?" asks Ky.

Dr. Paradigm looks at Ky as he nods and says, "I don't know what you will eventually become like, but I can say one thing for sure: very soon, you'll cease to be human."

To Be Continued in Chapter 17